Whenever a DVD is inserted into the computer a dialog box appears asking which program I would like to use to open and play the DVD. However, there are quite a few redundant entries in this window referring to programs no longer installed. How can these be removed from the window? Also, is it possible to completely prevent Windows from opening this dialog box when a DVD is inserted? On an unrelated topic, is it possible to convert a Word 2003 document into a PDF file and retain all formatting (such as bold lettering, italics, and hyperlinks)? If so, can you advise what additional software I require and the procedure for the conversion process? (more…)

I would like to reduce the number of items which appear in the Windows system tray (next to the clock) so that the computer will start and shutdown quicker. Am I correct that the relevant startup items need to be removed from the System Configuration Utility > “Startup” tab? If this assumption is correct can you clarify why the “Startup” tab has 16 items enabled but the system tray displays less than half these icons? (more…)

Over the past few months I have been attempting to defragment the hard drive within my computer, but the process stops without fully completing because “Some files on this volume could not be defragmented. Please check the defragmentation report for the list of these files”. Interestingly, when I view the defragmentation report the “Files which did not defragment” listing is empty. The same behaviour occurs when running the defragmenter in Safe Mode. Can you provide guidance on why the defragmenter is so stubborn and how this problem can be rectified? The computer is running Windows XP Service Pack 3. (more…)

Several weeks ago when I started my computer a message appeared at the bottom of the screen claiming that someone was trying to access my computer to obtain my credit card details. This was followed by a pop-up window flooding the screen called Security Tool which said it could fix the problem, but only if I paid a fee by entering my credit card details. The only way to regain control over the computer was switching the power off at the power outlet. Now whenever I try to start the computer the following message appears “We apologise for the inconvenience but Windows did not start successfully. If your computer stopped responding revert to the last known good configuration that worked…” and several options are presented: Safe mode, Safe mode with command prompt, Safe mode with networking, Last known good configuration, and Start Windows normally. If I attempt to “Start Windows normally” (or wait 30 seconds, after which time the computer will attempt to Start Windows normally anyway) a message appears saying that “A problem has been detected and Windows shut down to prevent damage to your computer”. The computer automatically reboots after this message appears and then the cycle commences again. The end result is that I cannot use the computer at all. I would like to get this problem resolved as there is some important data on the hard drive that I would like to keep, although the majority of other data on the drive is not important and can be lost if necessary. The computer is running Windows XP. (more…)

In the past I have not had an issue with the time which Windows XP took to start up. However, recently the computer has been taking about 7 to 8 minutes to startup before I can use any applications. A dialog box for connecting to the internet is also displayed upon start-up, so it would also be useful if this could be disabled. (more…)